As the Los Angeles Unified School District teachers and students returned from their summer break, enthusiasm was in the air at Crenshaw High.

Located in South Los Angeles with a population comprised of 70% African Americans, Crenshaw is celebrated for its world renowned choir, its historical basketball program and championship football program.

It is the elements of music and the power of athletics, which attracts students to Crenshaw but Principal Remon Corely is transforming the culture into a promising combination of athletics and academics.

“[The athletic program] continues to be solid, it’s one of the strong points of our institution,” Corely said during a recent interview with the Sentinel.

“So, what we want to do is replicate the success of the athletic program in the academic program. A big way that we’re doing that is pushing the scholar/ athlete message through our athletic program. We want the athletic program to lead to other opportunities for our students.

“So, it’s not good enough for them to win a city title for Crenshaw and have nothing to show for it when they leave. Our motto is ‘Every Cougar College Bound.’ We want to make sure that with everything we’re doing, we’re giving students true access to a college education.

Whether they get there through athletics, if they get there solely on academics or solely through the arts, we want to maximize every opportunity we can for them…”

Corely earned a master’s in Special Education and his administrative credentials from Cal State Dominguez Hills and told the Sentinel in an interview last year that he always had a passion for helping others, mentoring others.” He eventually landed a job at LAUSD headquarters downtown in the Charter School Division. He’s been at Crenshaw for about two years and describes his experience as “fantastic,” so far.

“It’s an easy place to fall in love with,” said Corely.

“ I love the kids, I love the school community. I’m looking forward to being here for a long time to help the school community get what they desire and that’s a high quality education. In terms of challenges, I guess the major challenge is wanting to do so much but having limited time.

“And the reward is seeing the progress. So, this year we see the steady progress and the steady growth in terms of school climate, in terms of staff collaboration, in terms of excitement about school. This year we started on a very high note and we want to continue to transition that forward into positive academic results for our kids.”

Still, some students are hopeful about landing a spot in the school’s legendary athletic program.

“Crenshaw is my home school and I can be an athlete here,” said freshman Davion Moore.

Said his classmate Miqushah Clark who is on the junior varsity football team this year, “It’s a good place to get scouted because they have a legacy of people who have been scouted by good colleges and they can get a good job and career…”

Corely hopes to recruit students from View Park Middle School, which is being housed temporarily on Crenshaw’s campus while a permanent campus is being built for them.

“I want to make sure we expose them to all the great opportunities that are here at Crenshaw High School,” said Corely.

“As a matter of fact, I need to purchase ‘Future Cougar’ T shirts for their 8th graders.”